Travel the Home Exchange Way blog

Trip report: home exchange in beautiful Vermont

Vermont home swap: beautiful sunset on Lake champlain

"We had a wonderful 3 week home swap in Sarah and Peter's home in South Burlington, Vermont. As the home exchange agreement was made well in advance we had plenty of time to get to know each other via messages and Skype. Sarah is an absolute perfectionist to detail and arranged everything for our trip to go as smoothly as possible. The house is really spacious and very comfortable. There's a lovely garden and deck to enjoy the lovely sunny days and the raspberries and tomatoes (delicious!). The neighborhood is extremely quiet even though it is situated a few minutes walk from a busy highway. We really appreciated the loan of the two cars especially the hybrid and the two bikes at our disposal which we used every day along the very safe cycle routes that took us into lovely wooded areas or countryside. Burlington is situated on Lake Champlain which is spectacular especially at sun set. We were surprised at the diversity of all the activities and places of interest in and around Burlington, there was so much to see from art galleries to apple orchards, museums, national parks, boat trips, dinner trains, restaurants, shops and of course the magnificent fall colors which we managed to see the beginning of. Sarah left us an excellent guide with advice and remarks of the best places/activities to see and do. We can highly recommend an exchange with Sarah and Peter who are excellent hosts and looked after our house in Belgium with great care. - Helena & Mike (Profondeville, Belgium)

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Highlight from the home exchange:

1. Very comfortable home and excellent hosts
2. Beautiful area on Lake Champlain
3. Lots of places to visit for all interests

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Photos from the home swap:

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Meet the members:

Peter & Sarah:  Peter and Sarah are happily retired. They have a lovely home in Burlington, Vermont, USA. Burlington is rated as one of the most livable cities in the USA. Its location on the shores of Lake Champlain near both the Adirondack Mountains and the Green Mountains means there is hiking, biking, skiing and boating nearby.  View their home swap offer in Burlington

 

Helena & Mike:  Helena and Mike are retired English teachers. They have a 200 year old cottage in the beautiful area of Profondeville between Namur and Dinant. Profondeville is situated on the river Meuse an area which is renowned for it’s beauty with the possibility to cycle or walk along the river for many hours. View their home swap offer in Profondeville

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Arrange your 2020 home swaps Sign up to Home Base Holidays and cut the cost of your 2020 getaways. By swapping homes you'll enjoy free accommodation plus all the space and convenience of a home from home. Search home swap travel offers

Family travel: benefits of a home swap vacation

Arranging a family getaway can typically be quite an expense what with transport, activities and accommodation costs. However, by choosing to swap homes rather than booking a hotel, you can dramatically cut the cost of your family getaway as your accommodation will be free. Being able to enjoy the space and comforts of home rather than being cramped in a hotel room can be big plus when travelling with children.

Obviously, some homes are not suitable for young children (e.g. certain features such as balconies, swimming pools, etc can cause a hazard) and so when searching home swap offers avoid any where the member has marked their home with the "Not suitable for small children" icon. However, do keep an eye out for homes displaying the "Suitable for small children" icon as these homes will usually be an ideal as a base for your family vacation.

Check out the Home swapping: is your home suitable for young kids? blog post.

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Home swap tip: if travelling with your young children, you may want to arrange a home swap with another young family as their homes may be ideally suited for your needs (e.g. toys, changing facilities, child car seats, etc)

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An excellent bonus of home swapping is that, as you are arranging a stay in a locals home, they are in an excellent position to offer advice and tips for budget-friendly family day trips and activities. Another big plus is that on a home swap you will have a kitchen where you can prepare a few meals and snacks before you head out on your adventures.   

Child-friendly home swap in Stockholm

Similarly, when adding your own home swap offer, it's useful to include information on your home's facilities/activities that may be useful to other families looking for a swap. Also, you can include some ideas for local outings. You will, of course, be able to expand on this, asking and answering questions, once in correspondence with potential home swap partners. It's also a great idea to put together a welcome folder for your home swap partners with information about your home (e.g. how to turn on the heating), emergency numbers, transport details, maps of the area and leaflets and recommendations or local activities and day trips.  

The beautiful home swap offer in central Stockholm (HE37376) is a lovely two-bedroom child friendly apartment. The apartment is also fully accessible for wheelchairs. The member has given excellent information (plus more photos) in their listing, both on the family's home and the local area.

'Plenty of toys, Wii U console and books (half English/half Swedish) for the kids. Other children’s accessories such as car seats, rain coats, boots, bikes etc are also available for our home swap guests.' - Jon (Stockholm, Sweden)

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View this family friendly home swap offer in Stockholm 

Home Swappers newsletter: 2020 holiday home swaps

2020 home swaps: whether you're looking for a staycation or traveling overseas, now is the ideal time to sign up to Home Base Holidays and start planning your home exchange accommodation for this Easter and summer getaways.

• Check out the latest issue of the Home Swappers newsletter

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This issue of the Home Swappers newsletter:

• Featured home exchange: Beautiful Georgian townhouse in the centre of Edinburgh, Scotland.  Villa in Los Alcazares, Spain located on Roda Golf & Beach Resort
• Five reasons: to try a home exchange holiday
• Home swaps for 2020: browse up-to-date listings in over 90 countries
• 20% discount code: sign up and start swapping!

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Holiday home swaps in 2020 

Cut the cost of your 2020 getaways by choosing to swap homes rather than book hotels or holiday rentals. By swapping homes you'll enjoy free accommodation plus all the space and convenience of a home from home.

• • • • • • Search home swap travel offers

Trip report: we had a wonderful home swap in Belgium

"My husband and I enjoyed a 3 week home swap staying at Helena and Mike's lovely historic home in Belgium's Wallonia region. It was just the 2 of us, but the house was perfectly set up for 2 couples and a child or two. The bedroom / bath situation is well thought out for privacy. And there is a wonderful room set up for games / entertainment / music / puzzles, plus a pool so it is also the perfect family retreat. The grounds are lovely. Helena has an amazing green thumb. We enjoyed eating on the deck on nice days and can imagine that in the summer the beautiful pool and patio would be a lovely place to hang out. We were pleasantly surprised at how many great things there were to do in the area and the variety of attractions. Within an hour to an hour and a half there were castles, museums (both art and historic), gardens, prehistoric stones, hiking, biking, great restaurants (our favorites were Ratatouille in Profondeville and La Fete Au Palais in Lustin which is up on the cliff overlooking the Meuse), and charming villages where you can sit in the square and have a very civilized lunch or coffee. We hopped on the train into Brussels a couple times. The train stops right next to the main art museum and square... how beautiful and convenient. We also took the train to Bruges and enjoyed a couple days there, soaking in the scenery. Helena and Mike were great hosts. They answered immediately whenever we had a question. The instructions they left were very clear and helpful. The house was clean and well equipped. We had a wonderful time and would highly recommend this location!" - Sarah (Vermont, USA)

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Highlight from the home exchange:

1. Beautiful home in a great location to tour the Wallonia region of Belgium
2. Castles, museums, gardens, beer, mussel and chocolate!
3. Rural, quiet spot but very close to train station with access to anywhere in Europe

 

Photos of Helena and Mike's home swap offer

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Meet the members:

Peter & Sarah:  Peter and Sarah are happily retired. They have a lovely home in Burlington, Vermont, USA. Burlington is rated as one of the most livable cities in the USA. Its location on the shores of Lake Champlain near both the Adirondack Mountains and the Green Mountains means there is hiking, biking, skiing and boating nearby.  View their home swap offer in Burlington

 

Helena & Mike:  Helena and Mike are retired English teachers. They have a 200 year old cottage in the beautiful area of Profondeville between Namur and Dinant. Profondeville is situated on the river Meuse an area which is renowned for it’s beauty with the possibility to cycle or walk along the river for many hours. View their home swap offer in Profondeville

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Start home swapping: arrange free accommodation

Rather than booking a hotel or holiday rental, arrange a home exchange through Home Base Holidays and enjoy free accommodation. 

Search thousands of home exchange offers

Australian bushfires & home swap travel advice

Our thoughts are with everyone in Australia in areas affected by the terrible bushfires, and for all concerned for family and friends in Australia. We have lots of Australian Home Base Holidays members, many of which have been members and friends for many many years - we're thinking of them all and sending our best wishes at this very worrying time. 

What to know before home swapping in Australia

At the time of writing there isn't advice against travel to Australia in general - but if you do have a home swap planned soon, please get in touch with your Australian hosts to check that they are safe and well. With the temperatures set to rise again in many of the affected areas, you’ll need to keep a close eye on the ever-changing situation and stay in touch with your hosts in the lead up to any travel dates.

Always confirm flights with airlines before departure. Airlines cancelled several flights in NSW due to low visibility from bushfire smoke. Etihad Airways announced it would waive change fees for Australian residents affected by the fires. The waivers will apply for travel to or from Australia. Virgin Australia is also waiving change fees.

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How to help

You can donate to the Australian Red Cross through The Intrepid Foundation (100% of all donations are being donated to these efforts).

As many as 800 million animals, including koalas and kangaroos, have been killed or hurt in the bushfires. You can donate to the New South Wales Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service (WIRES) emergency fund. The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital and Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park have both created GoFundMe pages to help search for injured animals, pay for veterinary assistance and help animals recover.

15 most popular home swap blog posts of the last year

Winning photo: home swap photography competition

The beginning of a new year is an ideal time to look back on posts published over the past 12 months. We aim to publish a variety of short posts of interest to both experienced home exchangers and those new to the idea of home swapping who often have a number of questions before pursuing their first home exchanges.

Looking over the posts that have had most views in 2019, there are three themes that predominate – ‘how to’ posts are the most popular, followed by members’ home exchange experience stories and thirdly, particular slants on home swapping by our guest posters.

We love to publish both Home Base Holidays members’ contributions (three extra free months are added to membership periods so it’s well worth sending in your short articles on any aspects of your home exchange experiences you feel will be of interest to others) and relevant posts by other travel bloggers (send us your ideas for guest posts and, if published, you will receive publicity for your own blog or travel site and a free six month membership to Home Base Holidays).

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1. Share Traveler: Q&A with Home Base Holidays

Mark Sealey of Home Base Holidays was delighted to be interviewed in January for Share Traveler, an excellent independent home exchange information service. This was the most viewed of all posts published by Home Base Holidays in 2019 and was also available on the Share Traveller website. It’s hard to believe that Home Base Holidays celebrates its 35^th anniversary in 2020! View this blog post

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2. Large group? Plan well ahead for a home swap vacation

Searching home swaps to accommodate a large number of people?

We may still be in January, with memories of the holiday season barely faded (and still trying to shift weight gained from too many treats!), but smart, experienced home exchangers know it’s not too soon to start planning their next Christmas or New Year’s home swap, especially if looking for a home large enough to accommodate a large family group. View this blog post.

Go to the home swap search page and change your search options as needed (Accommodates: up to 12+. Bedrooms: up to 6+) to narrow the results to homes most likely to suit your needs.

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3. Reasons to home swap (no hotels/rentals, pet care...)

Home Base Holidays members love home swapping for many reasons and it's particularly interesting to see what has attracted those new to home exchange. One recent member, Crepet, whose lovely home in Provence will, I'm sure, be of interest to many looking for a swap in France, gives her reasons in her member profile. View this blog post.

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4. Travel Q&A: wheelchair accessible home swaps

I'm looking to arrange a home swap between my condo in Sydney for wheelchair accessible accommodation in London, England. Do you have any suggestions? View this blog post.

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5. Top 10: things to do at the end of a home swap

For many first time home swappers it can be a little bit daunting knowing what is expected at the end of the home exchange. Here's a check list of 10 good things to do at the end of a home swap. View this blog post.

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6. Tips to declutter your home before a home swap

Getting ready for your summer home swap vacation? Your guests will be very much looking forward to staying in your home, a real home, and so won't be expecting to stay in a showroom. However, it is important that your home is clean and welcoming for your home swap guests. Here are a few tips that will help you declutter your home ready for your guests arrival. View this blog post.

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7. Arranging a home swap: messaging etiquette

One of the the biggest frustrations faced when organising a home exchange is having slow replies or no replies to enquiry messages. At Home Base Holidays we always try to emphasise the importance of replying to all messages you receive even if just to say "Thanks for your offer but it is not what I am looking for". View this blog post.

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8. Winning photo: home swap photography competition

A BIG thank you to everyone that sent in their photos to our home swap photography competition. We received nearly 300 photos making it extremely hard to select a winner. The photos we received included everything from fun selfies taken during a home swap, lovely photos of markets and off-the-tourist trail discoveries, as well as several very impressive photos from professional travel photographers. However, we loved the natural joy in Kate's winning photo (above) which was taken during her family's home exchange in the English Lake District. As the winner of the photo competition, Kate will be sent a Kindle Paperwhite! View this blog post.

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9. Home exchange websites: the annoyance of automatic membership payments

It's quite common here at Home Base Holidays for us to be contacted by people very interested in home swapping but also cautious about signing up after bad experiences where they were automatically charged a hefty membership fee on other home exchange websites. View this blog post.

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10. Q&A: convincing family members to try a home swap vacation

Hi Home Base Holidays, I am very interested in arranging a home exchange but the problem is convincing my husband. I wondered if you have any suggestions? View this blog post.

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11. 75 home exchanges in thirty years, and counting...

Guest post by Home Base Holidays member and experienced home swapper, Irene Bews:

Little did I think when we dropped the first letter into the post box offering our house for exchange that this was a process I was destined to repeat many times over the next thirty years. View this blog post.

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12. Tips to make your home swap listing stand out

It’s important that your listing shows your home at its best and makes your home swap offer stand out. Here are some tips to help make the most of your listing. View this blog post.

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13. Tips for arranging a Last Minute Home Exchange

We always recommend giving yourself plenty of time to find and plan your home exchange vacations. However, there can be times where the travel bug hits and you start searching last minute offers. At this time of year we still quite a number of members that are open to discussing possible exchanges for the upcoming winter holiday season.  View this blog post.

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14. Discovering new destinations: home swap experiences

"We returned to the USA in November after a wonderful home exchange to Mersea Island, England. It wasn’t a destination we had ever considered until communicating with experienced home exchangers, Kathy and Steve. Their home is lovely, comfortable and filled with unique original artwork. Mersea Island and the surrounding areas are beautiful and full of historic significance.” View this blog post.

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15.  Q&A: maximum length of a home exchange vacation?

I live in London and am looking to visit Melbourne in 2020 for an extended stay. I'm quite flexible with my travel dates but would like to stay from anywhere between 4 - 6 months. Home exchanging looks like it could be a good option but are there any limits to the length of a home exchange? View this blog post.

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Swap homes: free vacation accommodation in 2020

January is a perfect time to start looking for your spring and summer home swaps, allowing plenty of time to find a good match and to get to know your home swap partners.

Browse thousands of home swap vacation offers

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Sign up for free! Add your home to Home Base Holidays and start contacting other members to arrange your home swaps. Join Home Base Holidays